The Drop

New York Times bestselling author Dennis Lehane returns to the streets of Mystic River with this love story wrapped in a crime story wrapped in a journey of faith--the basis for the major motion picture The Drop, from Fox Searchlight Pictures directed by Micha#65533;l Roskam, screenplay by Dennis Lehane, and starring Tom Hardy, Noomi Rapace, and James Gandolfini.

Three days after Christmas, a lonely bartender looking for a reason to live rescues an abused puppy from a trash can and meets a damaged woman looking for something to believe in. As their relationship grows, they cross paths with the Chechen mafia; a man grown dangerous with age and thwarted hopes; two hapless stick-up artists; a very curious cop; and the original owner of the puppy, who wants his dog back. . . .

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Bob leads a loser's life, tending a shabby bar, making sure the Chechens get their irregular betting drops, having mercy on an penniless elderly bar fly now and then. Then he rescues a badly battered puppy whimpering in a dumpster, and begins a tenuous friendship with the wary, battered girl who helps him.

I never expected this often harsh tale would end well, but surprisingly it does! Short, but engrossing, worthy of the read.

It started like the samo samo. Old stuff, you know? In a way it stayed that way. Bar, bets, numbers, dangerous overlords. The end picked up speed but still... An old kind of story Westlake would have written way way back.

As I understand it, this is Dennis Lehane's novelization of his screenplay for the movie of the same name, based upon his short story "Animal Rescue." Prior the reading this book, I saw the film, which was stunning! I have watched it 4 times. Tom Hardy is absolutely brilliant in the role of Bob Saginowski. The editing of the film was a bit severe. I am sure that several critical scenes were left on the cutting room floor. Likewise, the novel seems to have some missing scenes. They each commit the sin of omission (none the less each on its own is a literary treasure), yet they complement each other so well that I urge you to both see the movie and read the book, in whichever order pleases your fancy! You will be rewarded as you find connections in the plot in each that were omitted in the other. I will now be following the books and films of Dennis Lehane.

I love Dennis Lehane and have read and enjoyed almost all of his books. This book was wonderful. It was a great story, but Lehane made you sympathize with almost all of the characters, no matter how flawed. Superb!

Excellent. At first I was worried that the copyright is held by 20th Cen Fox, not the author. But then realized this is really a spin off of a screen play for a movie I haven't seen yet. Aside from that, this is the author at his best. Easily equal to "Gone Baby Gone" and "Mystic River", but much shorter. Great characterizations, very good dialogue, and an innovative plot.